1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a data transfer apparatus, a data transfer system, a communication mode setting method in the data transfer apparatus, and a host apparatus that makes use of the data transfer apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there have been apparatuses that transfer data between host apparatuses such as personal computers and communication devices such as peripheral devices of the personal computers (hereinafter referred to as “data transfer apparatuses”).
Peripheral devices of personal computers have transfer rates that greatly differ depending on types, applications, and the like. For instance, mice have low transfer rates, while printers have high transfer rates. Thus a technique exists in which transfer rates of peripheral devices are acquired from the peripheral devices and in which a communication mode to be used between a host apparatus and the peripheral devices is determined based on the acquired transfer rates (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2012-063817, for instance).
A data transfer apparatus disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2012-063817 (hereinafter referred to as “prior art”) is a universal serial bus (USB) hub that supports USB 3.0. The prior art is connected to the host apparatus and to an external memory card controller, for instance, and transfers data between these apparatuses.
When a memory card of a type with high transfer rate is inserted into the external memory card controller, the prior art receives device information indicating the high transfer rate from the external memory card controller and determines use of USB 3.0 with high data transfer rate. When a memory card of a type with low transfer rate is inserted into the external memory card controller, the prior art receives device information indicating the low transfer rate from the external memory card controller and determines use of USB 2.0 with low data transfer rate.
Such a prior art prevents occurrence of situations such as communication at unnecessarily high speed in spite of low transfer rates of peripheral devices and reduces power consumption resulting from data transfer via a USB hub.